Arson Called Cause Of Fire

Arson Said To Be Cause Of Durham Fire That Leveled Barn Filled With

Rare Books

DURHAM -- A fire that destroyed a barn filled with more than 200,000 books, some dating from the 18th century, was probably set, fire officials said Monday.

Flames were shooting out from the wood and cement block barn on Barbara Lane when firefighters arrived about 2:45 a.m. Monday. Firefighters were still searching for embers underneath the 20-foot pile of books and building debris at 3 p.m. Monday. A backhoe was used to dig through the debris.

"The fire had a good head start," said Fire Chief Irvin Leining. "It was burning out of control before the fire department arrived. The flames were going through the roof."

"Something was used to start the fire," said Kurt Bober, assistant fire marshal. "We found the origin, but the cause is still under investigation."

Narrow passageways lined with shelves and piles of books forced firefighters to battle the blaze from outside. They were assisted by firefighters from Middlefield and Killingworth, "It was unsafe to go into the barn," Bober said, adding firefighters could not get inside the barn because it was filled with books. "It was unbelievable. It seemed as if there were millions of books everywhere." Firefighters had to knock down the barn to put out the fire.

Thousands of books inside of a tractor-trailer and the first and second floors of a metal warehouse were not destroyed, said Elliot Ephraim, owner of the books and the property where they were stored. But the books that survived were not particularly valuable, he said.

Ephraim, who has been storing his books on Barbara Lane for 23 years, said he sells out-of-print books through the mail to scholars and researchers. His business is known as Elliot's Books.

"It's a crime of humanity that all these books were lost," he said.

The books were duplicates from university libraries, Ephriam said, adding his rare book collection has earned him a reputation in other states. Ephraim, who is not insured, said he believes the

fire was set. "There was no electricity so you tell me how this fire got started?" He declined to estimate the value of his loss.

Ephraim's uninsured status is a concern for neighbors, who wonder how long it will take before the fire debris is cleaned up.

"Who's going to clean up this mess," said Fran Doody, whose property is next to Ephraim's. Doody is also concerned about the dozens of dead 16-inch bass in a nearby pond. The pond's water was used to put out the fire. "The pond is ecologically dead."

Officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection Monday took water samples and fish from the pond. Jim Coe, of New Haven Road, whose grandmother partially owns the pond, said it was unclear if the pond could be salvaged. "It all depends if the water has been contaminated from the fire. The water flows back into the culvert and into the pond."

The barn, which occasionally has been broken into by teenagers, was a neighborhood eyesore, said a neighbor, Pat Gawron. "Look at it -- it's ugly. It definitely brought down property values."